For quite a long time, Walgreens and other pharmacies have kept drugs containing ingredients that can be addictive behind locked cabinet doors. That extended to expensive items people might steal, such as expensive razors, benign over-the-counter drugs and cosmetics. The move is understandable. The theft of these items has risen exponentially. (These 19 companies were caught manipulating the American free market.)
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Walgreens has gone too far. It now keeps ice cream under lock and key. The next items will be peanuts and milk.

The move creates a horrible customer experience for several reasons. The most problematic is the workers are called to unlock items by a buzzer system. People hit the buzzer so employees can bring keys. At poorly staffed Walgreens, this can take 10 to 15 minutes and often means hitting the buzzer several times. Often, the workers serve the customers sheepishly. They know that they have provided poor services.

Walgreens will lose customers, or already has, to stores that are not as aggressive in locking up a large percentage of the items in their stores.

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What are the solutions? One would be to have a camera in every aisle. Of course, people would be needed to watch the cameras.

The best system is the one used at Walmart. Every person who leaves Walmart has to present a receipt. People can still hide stolen items, but making the process more difficult would help.

Walgreens will suffer over time. Its loss of customers eventually will drive a policy change. Management should hope that change is not too late.

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